Colin Farrell swaps parties for gym and jogging

Working out for film roles has turned one-time Hollywood hell-raiser Colin Farrell into one of the fittest guys in Tinseltown.

The Irish actor admits he only learned to “experience himself” more recently after sobering up and becoming more responsible following years of body abuse.

Nowadays, fans are more likely to see him out jogging or at the gym than partying with his peers – and he insists his hard work has paid off.

He tells WENN, “With exercise there’s nothing going in, but sweat coming out. There’s so many ways as human beings to experience ourselves. That’s just a way that I’ve grown in the last four years to really enjoy experiencing myself, feeling my body in space and actually being aware.

“For years if you asked me how many fingers do you got (sic) on your hands, chances are that I didn’t have to look down and start counting but I wasn’t that aware. It’s kind of really incredible and sometimes it’s really painful and sometimes it’s really joyous and sometimes it feels unfortunate and sometimes it feels blessed, but working out is something I’ve enjoyed doing the past couple of years and I love it.

“Sometimes I need to get out of the house (and work out), but if anything it’s just an escape to another aspect of myself. For (new film) ‘Total Recall’ I worked with the mitts (gloves) and I got really fast jogging. I was good in school in the 100-meter but never a long distance runner. But I got three miles down to a good time.”